In the months leading up to a critical vote to fund the government, Sherrod Brown's favorite talking point was the need to fund the Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP).

He even went on MSNBC to wrongly attack Republicans for not taking care of CHIP.

Less than a month later, when it came time to take care of CHIP, Sherrod Brown voted NO. Instead of standing by his calls to ensure funding for the 223,583 Ohio children depending on CHIP, he caved to Chuck Schumer and supported a government shutdown.

Before supporting the Schumer Shutdown, Brown opposed shutdowns:

"Another shutdown would hurt all Americans, but would be particularly hard on those that need the help the most: children, older Americans, and those with disabilities,' Brown said. 'It's time to stop the partisan stunts, and pass a clean continuing resolution so that these Ohio families don't have to worry about where their next meal is coming from." (Senator Sherrod Brown, 9/23/15)

Other Democrats previously opposed shutdowns as well:

"Congress cannot keep governing by crisis and expecting the American people to pick up the slack." (Senator Jon Tester, 9/30/15)

"In the event of a catastrophic economic debacle, it will be middle class Pennsylvanians that will shoulder the consequences." (Senator Bob Casey The Philadelphia Tribune, 10/13/13)

"When the government is shut down, it costs this country literally billions, even trillions of dollars." (Senator Elizabeth Warren, MSNBC 5/2/17)

Sherrod Brown's hypocrisy on government shutdowns and his flip-flop on CHIP was a disgrace. His political games wasted taxpayer dollars and accomplished nothing. It's time to elect a Senator who keeps their word and puts Ohioans first!

The Mexico City Policy was originally announced by President Reagan in 1984 and required nongovernmental organizations to agree as a condition of receiving any federal funding that they “would neither perform nor actively promote abortion as a method of family planning in other nations.” (CBS 1/23/17)

During his 25 years in Congress, Sherrod Brown has voted against this policy every time it has been put on the floor.

The policy was rescinded by Clinton in 1993, reinstated by Bush in 2001, rescinded again by Obama in 2009, and finally reinstated by President Trump in 2017.

This is yet another example of Sherrod Brown wasting your tax dollars to further his far-left ideology.

In February 2009, Sherrod Brown voted for Obama's $830 Billion stimulus program that promised massive economic growth, but failed almost immediately. By December 2009, Brown told taxpayers that a second stimulus was needed.

“The call for more spending comes as the federal budget deficit has climbed to $1.4 trillion, and the government is expected to record massive deficits throughout the next decade. ‘We have no choice,’ said Sen. Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio.” (The Columbus Dispatch, 12/7/09)

Obama made big promises about the stimulus that failed miserably:

The stimulus will keep unemployment below 8 percent and it will fall under 6 percent by 2012.

Brown: “This bill will go a long way toward putting Americans back to work and our economy back on track." (The ToledoBlade, 2/12/09)

Sherrod Brown loves the word "mandate." Yesterday we highlighted his calls for higher taxes in 2012 when he said, "Democrats have a mandate to raise taxes." Today we'll take a look at his support of the Obamacare individual mandate.

So what is the Obamacare individual mandate? The "individual shared responsibility payment," as Healthcare.gov explains, is the tax you pay if you choose not to purchase healthcare. Does that sound like freedom?

Many Ohioans don't think so, but Brown pushed back against that criticism in 2011, saying:

"The contentious requirement that all U.S. residents have health-care coverage or pay penalties is not a move toward communism, and everyone needs to have a plan if insurance companies are to be required to cover those with high-risk conditions." (The Toledo Blade, 1/3/11)

What Brown cannot push back on is the fact that lower and middle-income Ohioans have been hit hardest by his support of the individual mandate.

According to the New York Times, Ohioans making between $25,000-$50,000 per year are most likely to pay the penalty tax than purchase healthcare.

This income group is less likely than higher earners to get health insurance through work, and many do not qualify for an exemption based on affordability because they would be eligible for premium subsidies reducing the cost. (NYT 11/28/17)

37 percent of those uninsured, who must pay the penalty tax, say they do not buy healthcare because they can't afford it.

Making matters worse, the average penalty tax in 2017 was $708, more than double what it was just two years prior. That means the average Ohioan, who made a choice not to purchase healthcare, was forced to pay the federal government $708 in 2017 for NOTHING. What could you do with an extra $708?

Thankfully, the individual mandate was repealed with the passage of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (Brown voted NO) and will no longer penalize Ohioans beginning in 2019!

April 10 - After the 2012 election, Sherrod Brown said Democrats have a mandate to raise taxes to reduce the deficit.

Sherrod Brown showed his true colors in 2012 by immediately calling for higher taxes after his reelection.

“Sen. Sherrod Brown said Democrats have a mandate after this month's elections to raise taxes on the wealthy as part of any agreement to reduce the deficit.” (The Cincinnati Enquirer, 11/22/12)

Sherrod thinks the only way to reduce the deficit is to raise taxes. To prove him wrong, we only need to look at Ohio. After Ted Strickland and Richard Cordray left Ohio in an $8 Billion hole with 350,000 fewer jobs, Republicans turned it into a $2 Billion dollar surplus WITHOUT raising taxes. In fact, Republicans lowered taxes for Ohio families and created a pro-growth business environment that has attracted nearly 500,000 jobs.

Middle-class families are keeping more of their hard-earned money, but Senator Sherrod Brown wants to repeal their tax cuts with his boss, Chuck Schumer. Brown is not only pushing to repeal your tax cut, he is pushing to eliminate new economic opportunities for Ohio families as well.

As White House deputy press secretary Lindsay Walters said: “Only tone-deaf Democrats could think the proper response to the booming Trump economy, higher wages and hardworking Americans keeping more of their own money is to reverse the policies that got us here."

Brown voted for a BTU tax on energy that was estimated to cost Ohio $1.3 Billion a year and over 20,000 jobs

The energy tax was estimated to cost Ohio $1.3 Billion a year and over 20,000 jobs. (The Columbus Dispatch, 5/28/93)

The energy tax was also estimated to cost the typical middle-income family $400 a year. (The Columbus Dispatch, 5/28/93)

Brown said the BTU tax was a relatively fair way to tax energy use. (States News Service, 2/17/93)

The BTU tax hit the coal and petroleum industries the hardest, but also spread to construction, trade and service industries.

“The Ohio Inter-Agency Task Force on Proposed Energy Taxes, appointed earlier this year by Gov. George V. Voinovich, said 415,000 jobs nationwide would be put at risk by the tax, according to results from a computer simulation. … The tax would hit the coal and petroleum industries hardest, but job losses would spread to construction, trade and service industries.” (Columbus Dispatch, 5/11/93)

Despite his history of anti-coal votes, Brown stated during his 2012 re-election bid that there was no war on coal

Really?

April 6 - When Sherrod Brown calls for "Medicare for all" and "free" community college, he is really calling for higher taxes on Ohio families

Yesterday we highlighted Sherrod and Bernie's attempt to raise the Death Tax, but that's not the only tax they want to raise together. Brown has said many times that he wants to implement a "Medicare for all" system, which we know from Bernie's proposal would cost $32 Trillion and require income taxes to skyrocket. He also wants taxpayers to cough up $90 Billion to pay for "free" community college.

Even with all of the tax hikes, Sanders' plan only raises less than half the cost, leaving $16.6 Trillion to be financed some other way.(The Urban Institute, 5/16)

Brown co-sponsored two bills with Senator Tammy Baldwin (D-Wisconsin) for free community college tuition, which would cost $90 billion over ten years.

Baldwin estimated the federal government’s total cost for the program will be $90 billion over the next 10 years, with $80 billion of that coming from the community college program and $10 billion directed toward institutions that serve primarily minorities. That number is up from the $60 billion estimated by the White House in January, and it implies Washington will expect states to cough up around $30 billion on their own in accordance with the proposed three-to-one ratio of federal-to-state contributions. (Real Clear Politics, 7/8/15)

April 5 - Brown supports the Death Tax and tried to raise it with Bernie Sanders

The Estate tax, or Death Tax, is a tax on your right to transfer property at your death. It consists of an accounting of everything you own or have certain interests in at the date of death. Whether your family owned a farm, ran a business, or saved for their entire life, the government may take a piece when they die and leave you with less.

Sherrod Brown thinks the government's piece should be bigger.

In 2010, Brown co-sponsored Bernie Sanders’ Death Tax bill to tax estates up to 65%

Senator Sanders said the bill would raise $318 Billion over 10 years and called the proposed change "An American shared responsibility.” (Politico)

In Ohio, Republican leaders rightfully eliminated the Death Tax at the state level, but Sherrod Brown is fighting like hell to make sure Ohioans pay the federal government as much as possible after they die.

April 4 - Brown voted for "one of history's largest tax increases"

Not only has Sherrod Brown voted against tax cuts for Ohio families multiple times, he also thinks you should be paying more.

The bill included: A tax increase on the Social Security benefits; $55.8 billion in Medicare cuts; an increase in the Medicare payroll tax; a delay in cost of living adjustments for military personnel; an energy (Btu) tax; a new top income bracket of 36 percent with a 10 percent surtax on income of more than $250,000; and an increase in the corporate income tax rate to 35 percent.

Here's how the Columbus Dispatch described the bill:

“President Clinton's deficit reduction plan - fueled by one of history's largest tax increases - squeaked through the House of Representatives last night, winning approval 219-213 after last-minute cajoling and arm-twisting by the White House and Democratic leaders.” (Roger Lowe, “Massive Tax Bill Barely Passes,” The Columbus Dispatch, 5/28/93)

The Philadelphia Inquirer had this to say:

“Many older Americans are angry and confused about the budget plan passed by Congress last week. They are angry because the plan increases income taxes on Social Security benefits for middle-class and affluent seniors. They are confused because it is not always easy to compute the added tax burden. Some are finding it hard to square an expected tax increase of several hundred dollars a year with political reassurances that the budget plan would not hurt the middle class. An estimated 5.5 million Social Security retirees would have to pay a higher tax as a result of the change, which is expected to raise $24.5 billion over the next five years.” (David Hess, “Income Tax Hike On Social Security Angers Older Americans,” The Philadelphia Inquirer, 8/10/93)

For decades, Sherrod Brown has failed to put Ohioans first and has instead opted to appease the fringe left and liberal donors. Ohio deserves better!

April 3 - Brown voted against the 2001 and 2003 Bush tax cuts

Yesterday we reminded you of Brown's vote against the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, but that wasn't the first time he voted against cutting taxes for Ohio families.

Brown also voted against the Bush tax cuts, which lowered the tax rate for all income levels, increased economic growth and helped create more jobs. The Bush tax cuts were even extended by President Obama in 2010 and then made permanent in 2012.

The 2003 tax cuts were designed to encourage businesses to invest in the economy. After declining in the previous 11 quarters by an average of 1.8 percent annually, business investment grew at a rapid 7 percent annual clip for the next 11 quarters.

After losing 1.1 million jobs in the preceding 18 months before the tax cuts, America gained 2.3 million jobs in the subsequent 18 months.

In the previous three years from the May 28th enactment, the S&P 500 had declined by 7.3 percent. 15.9 percent, and then 11.3 percent. In the next three years, it leaped by 17.6 percent. 7.0 percent, and then 6.8 percent.

Sherrod Brown did not learn his lesson from the Bush tax cuts and continues to advocate for higher taxes on Ohio families.

Tax reform is working and 59% of Ohioans approve of the new law. Brown, however, voted no on tax reform and even claimed that businesses would not use their tax savings to create more jobs and invest in their employees. Clearly, he was wrong.